Katsuhiro left the Council Member's house and got to work. He created 8 Shadow Clones who used Transformation jutsu and mixed with the public to improve his reputation while ruining Fujin's reputation.
His clones got into action a few minutes before Eagle dispatched the Anbu ninjas. What neither Katsuhiro nor Hiruzen knew was that Fujin was the very first one to act! Not even 5 minutes had passed since the meeting ended when Fujin created and dispatched 20 Shadow Clones! They had begun spreading the rumors long before Hiruzen or Katsuhiro made their moves!
A few Anbu entered the marketplace while disguised as old men. They began buying some groceries before a couple of them 'accidentally' ran into each other. They enthusiastically greeted each other before one of them said, "Did you hear what happened in today's Council Meeting?"
Though the Anbu wasn't too loud, his words were clearly heard by everyone nearby. They became curious as the Council Meeting included the most influential people in the village and generally made all the big decisions.
The other Anbu asked curiously, "I didn't. What happened? And why are you so happy?"
The first Anbu said, "You won't believe it. Suzuki Fujin, the youngest member of our Council, put forth a proposal to create a Guidance Hall inside the village. In the Guidance Hall, youngsters will be able to get guidance from experienced ninjas when they try to learn a new jutsu. It'll be a great help for the ninjas who are from a civilian background.
My grandson became a ninja a few years ago. He used to complain about how kids from the clans are stronger than him as their seniors help them while he is weaker because we can't help him. Now, he will get the same help as them! You should tell it to your granddaughter as well. It'll be very helpful for her as well!"
The other Anbu exclaimed happily, "Wow! She'll be jumping for joy on hearing this! She was complaining about the same as well. I had some reservations when someone so young was selected to represent the civilian ninjas, but I now see why Lord Hokage chose him! To think that a 16-year-old youngster would come up with something like this!"
The people around them heard their words and were surprised. Some of them had children or relatives who were ninjas or aspired to be one. A couple of them were ninjas themselves.
The first Anbu said, "Well, from what I heard, the basic idea had come from Katsuhiro. He is an Elite Jounin. However, his idea was very crude and unrealistic. It also excluded the clan ninjas. The Council wouldn't have accepted such a proposal.
Fujin worked day and night for a couple of months to make the proposal good enough. I heard that he hadn't slept for days and looked very tired with giant bags under his eyes during the Council Meeting. However, he improved it so much that his proposal was accepted unanimously by the Council! That hasn't happened in years!"
The second Anbu replied, "That's even more impressive! Anyone can come up with ideas, but only a true leader can realize their potential and put them into action."
The first Anbu agreed, "I know, right? I heard that he even argued against the Elders and the Clan Leaders to get the proposal accepted immediately so that the civilian ninjas wouldn't have to wait. We are lucky that the one selected to represent us can fight against such formidable people for us!"
A third 'old man' joined the conversation and exclaimed in surprise, "He confronted the clan leaders and Elders for us? Damn! I wish I could hear that conversation. We are blessed to have such a leader!"
Similar conversations were happening all throughout the village. All the details of the proposal were leaked to the village. They even mentioned how even the clan ninjas would benefit, causing them to feel thankful towards Fujin as well. At the same time, they minimized Katsuhiro's contribution to the proposal, almost making him look like Fujin's subordinate.
Of course, Fujin's clones weren't that polite. They openly demeaned Katsuhiro and his unrealistic proposal. Hiruzen didn't do so because that would mean that others with good ideas wouldn't come forward. However, Fujin had no such qualms. Why would he increase his workload? As such, Katsuhiro's reputation took a major dive wherever his clones passed through.
Katsuhiro's clones did the opposite and tried to improve his reputation while being brutal on Fujin. They used the fact that Fujin had also included clan ninjas to say that Fujin wasn't acting solely towards the benefit of the civilian ninjas and ruined Katsuhiro's original proposal. Hence, he should be removed from the seat and his seat should be given to someone like Katsuhiro who thought only of the civilian ninjas.
Even though he managed to influence a few people, they were in the minority as there were 5 times more people campaigning against him. When the people debated among themselves in their respective circles, they were quickly explained how the proposal wouldn't have passed otherwise as clan leaders would have opposed them. Even if it had passed, the clan ninjas wouldn't guide anyone in the Guidance Hall, which would be a lost opportunity.
As such, even without Fujin and Hiruzen's interference, the ones who were influenced by Katsuhiro's clones changed their stance and gave credit to Fujin.
When Katsuhiro heard about what the common people in Konoha were talking about, veins bulged and pulsed on his forehead, throbbing with every surge of anger! He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms, causing them to bleed. Hearing something like that after spending months on the proposal was just too torturous for him.
He barely managed to control his rage and continued walking forward. He had barely taken a few steps ahead when two young ninjas passing by him talked among themselves.
"Man! Fujin-san is so cool! He can even force the clan leaders and Elders to support his proposal. By comparison, Katsuhiro is kind of lame. I don't know why some people think that Fujin-san should have kept the clan ninjas out of the proposal. After all, they fight with us as well. Katsuhiro was stupid to suggest that."
The two of them were just normal Chunins. Neither of them intended to rile up Katsuhiro. In fact, they hadn't even seen him and didn't even know what he looked like. Even so, their words caused Katsuhiro's blood pressure to rise so much that he vomited blood and fell unconscious in the middle of the road!
Hearing a thud, several people looked towards him. They immediately rushed to help him out. Luckily, the crowd had a medical ninja who immediately stepped forward. She identified and inspected him. The medical ninja was first worried as an Elite Jounin had fallen unconscious in the middle of the road! She was afraid that a formidable enemy had infiltrated into the village once again.
However, a peculiar expression appeared on her face after she inspected Katsuhiro. She thought, 'This is so weird… There isn't a single wound on his body. It doesn't seem like he was poisoned either. However, his blood pressure is abnormally high! Did he fall unconscious due to high blood pressure? Can Elite Jounins even suffer from blood pressure?'
She suppressed her curiosity and immediately took Katsuhiro to the hospital. While Katsuhiro was being treated in the hospital, Yamanaka Fu entered Danzo's office and said, "We received a scroll from Tiger."
He handed Danzo the scroll. Danzo opened it and a peculiar expression appeared on his face. He thought, 'So they finally put forth the proposal… However, the proposal has been modified almost entirely. It won't offend the clans much, something my proposal was intended to do. Even though Fujin didn't steal the credit for the idea from Katsuhiro, he ended up stealing all the credit without putting himself at risk…'
Danzo analyzed for a few seconds before concluding, 'This looks like Hiruzen's work. Even though the boy is smart and suspicious, he shouldn't be able to make the proposal this good. Especially the financial aspect, it was something I intended to exploit while using Katsuhiro. If he did, he wouldn't have foolishly given all the benefits to the village. That is something only Hiruzen would do.
Fujin must have approached Hiruzen at some point and talked about this proposal. Hiruzen saw through my scheme as Katsuhiro kept visiting me even when Hiruzen had increased the surveillance around my labs. The modifications should be a result of that. Sigh, Katsuhiro turned out to be a complete disappointment.'
Danzo burned the scroll and stopped thinking about it. Without being in the council, there wasn't much he could do. Not to mention, Hiruzen had been watching him like a hawk. He was worried that Hiruzen might actually carry out his threat if he tried to interfere. More than half of his base was still missing due to the ridiculous Lightning attack. He didn't want to see what was left being burned down by an unstoppable fire.
With Katsuhiro hospitalized and Danzo staying out of the matter, Fujin's clones and the Anbu spread the rumors unrestricted for a couple of days until the rumors began spreading by themselves. Hiruzen allotted the budget for the Guidance Hall and its construction officially began. After hearing about Katsuhiro, he also made an official announcement, giving Katsuhiro some credit but giving Fujin most of the credit for the proposal.
Fujin continued with his training while guiding his students. A couple more days passed. In the Land of Wave, team 7 readied themselves to face Zabuza once again. Meanwhile, Fujin had an unexpected visitor. He opened the door and said, "It's been a while, Hoka. Come in."
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